The European Heritage Label has been officially awarded to the Pader

23. April 2026:

On Wednesday evening, a delegation from Paderborn received the European Heritage Label (EHL) during an official ceremony at the Art and History Museum in Brussels. It had already been announced in February that the unique urban river landscape of the Pader, along with twelve other European sites, would be honored with this special distinction. Mayor Stefan-Oliver Strate, Deputy Mayor for Technical Affairs Claudia Warnecke, Prof. Dr. Peter Fäßler from the University of Paderborn, Dieter Honervogt as chairman of the “Friends of the Pader e. V.” association, as well as the program directors of the “European Heritage Label” project, Brigitte Zacharias and Prof. Dr. Michael Ströhmer, accepted the seal during a festive ceremony.

“It is a great honor for me, as mayor of the city, to accept this extraordinary award for the Pader Urban Water Landscape,” Stefan-Oliver Strate stated in his address. “I am proud and grateful that our great commitment is being recognized in this special way,” said the mayor. In her speech, Deputy Mayor for Technical Affairs Claudia Warnecke once again emphasized how many colleagues and project partners, above all the University of Paderborn, had worked together with great dedication to achieve the label. “It is a wonderful tribute to our urban cultural and natural landscape in Pader and symbolizes respect for the historical European exchange of knowledge and experience regarding water culture,” she emphasized.

During the award ceremony, which was accompanied by dance and music performances, Glenn Micallef, EU Commissioner for Intergenerational Justice, Youth, Culture, and Sport, stated: “These thirteen newly designated sites embody the very best of what the European Heritage Label stands for. They reflect the richness of our shared history and each marks an important milestone in building a committed, enlightened, and forward-looking society rooted in the European values that matter to us. In a time of great change and upheaval, cultural heritage provides us with a sense of grounding. It helps us understand where we come from, gives us a sense of our current situation, and inspires us to shape the community of tomorrow. We should never underestimate the significance and potential of these sites: they help citizens connect with their identity and see their shared history reflected in the places recognized by the EHL.” In addition, a short video was shown for each site, giving the other attendees a first impression of the respective award winner.

In addition to the official award ceremony in Brussels, the thirteen award-winning sites from across Europe will be actively networking in the coming days. To this end, the coordinating European Heritage Label office in Brussels is offering a number of workshops and events where representatives of the sites can get to know one another, exchange ideas, and discuss future collaboration.

In Paderborn, learning and experiential sites along the Pader River are currently being designed in collaboration with a specialist firm, “cognitio Kommunikation & Planung GmbH.” Targeted measures aim to sustainably convey both the tourist accessibility of the unique Pader river landscape and the theme of “European water culture,” particularly to the younger generation. The focus will be on cultural-historical, ecological, and artistic perspectives in a European context surrounding the resource of water. “We want to bring the long and impressive environmental history of the Pader to life for all visitors and the residents of Paderborn,” emphasize Brigitte Zacharias and Prof. Dr. Michael Ströhmer.

Under the title “City.People.River. – The Pader for Europe,” Paderborn 2023, in collaboration with the university, officially submitted an application to the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. In October 2024, the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs nominated the project as Germany’s candidate for the European Heritage Label, thereby advancing it to the final selection process for consideration in Brussels.

Interested parties can learn more about the project at www.pader-europe.eu. Additionally, the Instagram account “stadt.mensch.fluss” offers exciting insights into the project and the beauty of the Pader. The project office at Königsplatz is available to answer questions and provide further information.

Image information: During the official presentation of the seal at the “Art and History Museum” in Brussels: (from left) Heike Raab (Representative of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate to the Federal Government and for European and Media Affairs), Paderborn Mayor Stefan-Oliver Strate, Brigitte Zacharias (EKS Program Director, City of Paderborn), Claudia Warnecke, Deputy Mayor for Technical Affairs of Paderborn, Ludmila Ngoma (EKS Program Assistant, City of Paderborn), Dieter Honervogt (Chairman of “Friends of the Pader e. V.”), Prof. Dr. Peter Fäßler (University of Paderborn, Department of History), Dr. Michael Ströhmer (EKS Program Director, City of Paderborn), and Eric Seng (Senior Ministerial Director, Hessian Ministry of Science and the Arts).© EHL Bureau